1
|
Beauregard MA, Bedford GC, Brenner DA, Sanchez Solis LD, Nishiguchi T, Abhimanyu, Longlax SC, Mahata B, Veiseh O, Wenzel PL, DiNardo AR, Hilton IB, Diehl MR. Persistent tailoring of MSC activation through genetic priming. bioRxiv 2024:2024.02.01.578489. [PMID: 38370626 PMCID: PMC10871228 DOI: 10.1101/2024.02.01.578489] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/20/2024]
Abstract
Mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs) are an attractive platform for cell therapy due to their safety profile and unique ability to secrete broad arrays of immunomodulatory and regenerative molecules. Yet, MSCs are well known to require preconditioning or priming to boost their therapeutic efficacy. Current priming methods offer limited control over MSC activation, yield transient effects, and often induce expression of pro-inflammatory effectors that can potentiate immunogenicity. Here, we describe a 'genetic priming' method that can both selectively and sustainably boost MSC potency via the controlled expression of the inflammatory-stimulus-responsive transcription factor IRF1 (interferon response factor 1). MSCs engineered to hyper-express IRF1 recapitulate many core responses that are accessed by biochemical priming using the proinflammatory cytokine interferon-γ (IFNγ). This includes the upregulation of anti-inflammatory effector molecules and the potentiation of MSC capacities to suppress T cell activation. However, we show that IRF1-mediated genetic priming is much more persistent than biochemical priming and can circumvent IFNγ-dependent expression of immunogenic MHC class II molecules. Together, the ability to sustainably activate and selectively tailor MSC priming responses creates the possibility of programming MSC activation more comprehensively for therapeutic applications.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Guy C. Bedford
- Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA
| | | | | | - Tomoki Nishiguchi
- The Global Tuberculosis Program, Texas Children’s Hospital, Immigrant and Global Health, WTS Center for Human Immunobiology, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Abhimanyu
- The Global Tuberculosis Program, Texas Children’s Hospital, Immigrant and Global Health, WTS Center for Human Immunobiology, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Santiago Carrero Longlax
- The Global Tuberculosis Program, Texas Children’s Hospital, Immigrant and Global Health, WTS Center for Human Immunobiology, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Barun Mahata
- Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Omid Veiseh
- Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Pamela L. Wenzel
- Department of Integrative Biology & Pharmacology, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA
- Center for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA
- Immunology Program, The University of Texas MD Anderson UTHealth Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Andrew R. DiNardo
- The Global Tuberculosis Program, Texas Children’s Hospital, Immigrant and Global Health, WTS Center for Human Immunobiology, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
- Department of Internal Medicine and Radboud Center for Infectious Diseases, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Isaac B. Hilton
- Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Michael R. Diehl
- Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA
- Department of Chemistry, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Cui Y, Nash AM, Castillo B, Sanchez Solis LD, Aghlara-Fotovat S, Levitan M, Kim B, Diehl M, Veiseh O. Development of Serum-Free Media for Cryopreservation of Hydrogel Encapsulated Cell-Based Therapeutics. Cell Mol Bioeng 2022; 15:425-437. [PMID: 36444347 PMCID: PMC9700535 DOI: 10.1007/s12195-022-00739-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2022] [Accepted: 08/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction While hydrogel encapsulation of cells has been developed to treat multiple diseases, methods to cryopreserve and maintain the composite function of therapeutic encapsulated cell products are still needed to facilitate their storage and distribution. While methods to preserve encapsulated cells, and post-synthesis have received recent attention, effective preservation mediums have not been fully defined. Methods We employed a two-tiered screen of an initial library of 32 different cryopreservation agent (CPA) formulations composed of different cell-permeable and impermeable agents. Formulations were assayed using dark field microscopy to evaluate alginate hydrogel matrix integrity, followed by cell viability analyses and measurements of functional secretion activity. Results The structural integrity of large > 1 mm alginate capsules were highly sensitive to freezing and thawing in media alone but could be recovered by a number of CPA formulations containing different cell-permeable and impermeable agents. Subsequent viability screens identified two top-performing CPA formulations that maximized capsule integrity and cell viability after storage at - 80 °C. The top formulation (10% Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and 0.3 M glucose) was demonstrated to preserve hydrogel integrity and retain cell viability beyond a critical USA FDA set 70% viability threshold while maintaining protein secretion and resultant cell potency. Conclusions This prioritized screen identified a cryopreservation solution that maintains the integrity of large alginate capsules and yields high viabilities and potency. Importantly, this formulation is serum-free, non-toxic, and can support the development of clinically translatable encapsulated cell-based therapeutics. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12195-022-00739-7.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yufei Cui
- Rice University, Houston, TX 77030 USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Boram Kim
- Rice University, Houston, TX 77030 USA
| | | | | |
Collapse
|